The London 2012 Olympic Park is one of the most significant new pieces of urban realm to have been created in living memory. LDA Design in collaboration with Hargreaves Associates has led the design of the Parklands and Public Realm for the entire 102 hectare site and has masterminded its transformation from contaminated industrial land into a 21st century park. The practice has also led the design of its post- Games transformation into a permanent public park. Forming the centre piece of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the 2.5km2 Olympic Park is the largest new urban park in the capital since the Victorian era and is a catalyst for regeneration in East London.

Green infrastructure, including the installation of plants on under-utilised urban surfaces, can provide significant environmental benefits for our cities. These green interventions have the capacity to cool the urban environment, reduce energy consumption, mitigate flooding and increase habitats for biodiversity. They provide an opportunity to evolve the way we develop the built environment, to maximise existing infrastructure and lower the need for costly upgrades.

Situated in the heart of downtown Chicago, the Crown Sky Garden is a sanctuary for patients, families, doctors and administrators within this 23 story Children’s Hospital. The commitment to this sky garden was built upon a growing body of scientific research which links access to natural light and contemplative spaces to reduced patient recovery time. This regenerative project offers a new paradigm for healthcare design that integrates healing gardens as part of the health care regiment within these institutional environments.Continue reading Crown Sky Garden | Chicago USA | mikyoung kim design

Urban Explorer Table: A large multi touch surface where you can use simple and intuitive gestures to explore and evaluate various urban development projects . The graphics and interaction are fluid and fast, the gestures natural. The table becomes a tool for cities to discuss developments, city infrastructure, energy use and other data in a more visual format and easy to read representation that can be easily read by citizens.

Urban Explorer Table 2 was developed by Interactive Institute Swedish ICT together with the city planning office of Norrköping in Sweden in close collaboration with Visualisation Centre C, Hyresbostäder in Norrköping and City Planning Office of Gothenburg. Data credits: City Planning Office Norrköping, Hyresbostäder in Norrköping, Linköping University, City Planning Office Gothenburg, Göteborg Energi and SAAB Vricon System.

A recently completed building with 4 additional floors; the requirement was to replace an unsightly mesh-façade and improve on a bland and uninviting disused space behind it. Located within the prime Singapore Central Business District (CBD), the 1984 building is 10 storeys tall and was originally designed to be environmentally responsive with floors receding inwards with each lower floor. External RC Planters spanning across the building’s 24m width façade was meant for sun-shading.Continue reading An Unexpected Hanging-Garden | Singapore | AgFacadesign & Tierra Design